The legal bit...

Customers using a HETAS Registered Installer in England and Wales will be given a HETAS Certificate of Compliance (Building Regulation Compliance Certificate) by the installer on the completion of installation work. This is vital importance in demonstrating that the installation was carried out by a competent installer working for a HETAS registered business and complies with the relevant Building Regulations.

The information on the certificate is used to record your installation, and in England & Wales it is used to notify your Local Authority Building Control Department (LABC) of the work that was undertaken. This ‘self certification’ by competent registered installers takes the place of a Local Authority Building Notice which could cost you a significant amount of money, this can vary by region and the cost of the work being carried out. The HETAS installer is charged a small fee by HETAS for this service, but much less than the charges incurred if you seek a Building Notice via the Local Authority.

The information is required to validate household insurance and will be required by Solicitors in any home selling process. Failure to notify the Local Authority, can be an offence resulting in enforcement action being taken against the Householders and/or the installer, this could cost anything up to £5000. Regulations and certification vary by regions, consumers in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland and Isle of Man should contact their relevant Local Authority prior to commencing any installation work as HETAS installers cannot self-certificate their work in these regions.

All of our installations are caried out by HETAS registered installers who will self-certificate their work and notify the relevant authorities. Your stove will be legal, compliant and ready to light as soon as the adhesives have had time to cure, generally in 48 hours.

By the way, we're more than happy for you to carry out preparation works yourself, i.e. laying hearths, opening up fireplaces, in order to keep your costs down. We're also more than happy for you to provide hearth materials, or bricks etc., in order to construct fireplaces. We're even happy for you to provide your own stove (Though please let us know which stove it is and from where purchased so that we can check DEFRA compliance etc. well before we book your appointment.) However, we ask that the provision of liners, cowls, stove pipes, adhesives, CO alarms etc and the actual installation of the stove, lining, insulating backfill, cowls etc., must be left to the shop and/or installers, as we know then that we're working with suitable materials and because no installer will sign off installation works carried out by others; the loss of a HETAS registration is not a risk worth taking.

The likely costs...

There are three main components of a stove installation; the stove of course, the installation materials and the fitting costs (labour etc.). We have broken this down below to enable you to see the typical costs involved.

Based on a 2-storey house using 10m of liner, with a stove on the ground floor and a chimney suitable for lining. For the sake of simplicity we must also assume that the room hosting the stove is adequately ventilated and that the hearth and surrounds are in suitable order.

Installation materials: Approx £750 which will generally include sufficient back-fill insulation. Prices WILL depend on your actual circumstances of course. Check our Checkatrade.com presence for our record on quoting - and sticking to our quotes.)

Fitting cost: ~£350

Timescale...

Most installations are completed in one day. If 'knocking out' to open up a fireplace is involved, or cements and adhesives need a little time to set, the works may take 1 or 2 days more. In that case, on-site labour will be charged at £350 per day, rising to around £450 if the time spent is a very long one. We can agree on this price before works commence.

If scaffolding is required, this will generally cost around £350, paid directly to the scaffolder on completion, but the vast majority of jobs do not require it, as most jobs are carried out using ladders to access the roof. You're naturally welcome to find your own local scaffolder if that helps with costs.

Capping off gas pipes we can arrange for you, but it's generally less expensive if you arrange this locally and pay for it yourself.

Sweeping of the chimney prior to works may be necessary. The surveyor will advise about this. We can arrange this for you but it may be cheaper for you to do so yourself.

Stainless steel liners. The stainless steel lining material we use is HETAS approved and has a 20 year warranty (conditions apply). It may seem crazy but we can also offer what we consider to be a superior lining, but with only 15 year guarantee, or the top notch liner with a 30 year guarantees at extra cost. Guarantees depend on what the manufacturer wants to give, rather than anyrthing else.

Vermiculite insulating backfill is charged at £22 per 100 litres. Most jobs fall within the range 400 - 600 litres. We recommend the use of vermiculite for most installations. Vermiculite is a light weight natural mineral which acts as an excellent heat insulator. Adding vermiculite to the void between your chimney and liner will improve the performance of your stove by ensuring the flue gases stay warm enough to escape quickly therefore ensuring the draw of the chimney stays strong. It also reduces condensation within the chimney improving the life of your liner.

Additional costsIf ventilation is not sufficient our fitters can add wall / floor vents at a cost of £30 each. We use either Ryton vents or draught-proof vents at the same cost. The draught proof vents have a large mushroom head shaped cover fitted externally. Additional ventilation is likely to be required for stoves above 5kW and in new build properties.